Human Nature: Annoyance Response

Something odd struck me the other day. No great epiphany, just a few pieces of data falling near each other in my brain.

• domesticated cat meowing for food
• car honking
• baby crying
• television/radio/web advertising
• alarm clock
• telephone ring

These everyday things and plenty of others take advantage of a peculiar human behaviour: Annoy us and we'll capitulate. Whatever it is we don't really want to do, just make annoying noises to wear us down, and we'll give in.

Then there's the second layer of annoyance I get from realizing that. I'm annoyed, I'm feeding the cat, and I realize that I've just given in to this ridiculous behaviour, which further annoys me, but what am I going to do about it?

Of course sometimes this is a good thing. If somebody's stopped to send some text messages at a green light, they deserve to be annoyed by honking until they agree to look up at the road and drive. The trouble, of course, is that sound goes off in all directions. Now people in other lanes are also annoyed, whether they deserve it or not.

A crying baby probably needs something, and annoying noises are its only way of communication, so it's hard to get too upset at them. (This coming from a non-parent, your mileage may vary.) But by the time the kid's four years old, if it's throwing a hissyfit in the grocery store until the annoyed parent gives in and buys it whatever toy or candy it was whining about, then we've got a problem.

NOW IT'S COME TIME FOR ME TO TRY THIS OUT MYSELF. SINCE I DON'T HAVE ANY CLEVER ENDING IN MIND FOR THIS POST, I'M GOING TO WRITE IN ANNOYING ALL-CAPS UNTIL YOU STOP READING. THE QUICKEST ESCAPE ROUTE IS TO CLICK THE LINK BELOW, A TOTALLY UNRELATED PAGE SET UP BY MY SOON-TO-BE BROTHER-IN-LAW. CLICK THAT AND STOP READING NOW. WHY HAVEN'T YOU GONE TO HIS PAGE YET? GLUTTON FOR PUNISHMENT EH? WELL, WHILE I'M STILL ANNOYING YOU, I RECOMMEND THAT YOU ALSO POST A LINK TO THIS PAGE. POST IT ANYWHERE, HE'S NOT FUSSY. POST IT WITH THE LINK TEXT AS "ABALASTOW COMPENDIUM" FOR MAXIMUM IMPACT. BUT NOT IN ALL CAPS. OK REALLY I DON'T HAVE ANY MORE TO SAY. JUST CLICK THE LINK AND ALL THIS ANNOYING TEXT WILL GO AWAY. DO IT! DO IT NOW!

Link: abalastow compendium (www.abalastow-compendium.org)